Saying goodbye to an albatross

[OL Trekker]

My 2006 RRS HSE has covered 207800 miles of excellent motoring and still leaps around like a young stud and stops on a dime. Preventative maintenance is key and when something untoward occurs, pay the piper and move on. And please don't put it on the Albatross. That wonderful bird has skills far exceeding mine, knows its way around without GPS, does not use fossil fuels and spends most of its time taking care of its young. Wish I was an Albatross.

 

[viper_iii]

Ok,... boat anchor? concrete shoes?

Reality is they tend to have more issues than a toyota.. true
... but its not a yota... also true, and also makes me happy its not.

 

[amneme1]

Update. Trying to make it through the winter before I dump it. Coolant still leaking. Found out it’s some o ring or cross over pipe.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[spawnywhippet]

I just did this same job myself in December, replacing the water pump at the same time as a precaution. My old water pump was fine (57k miles), but the o rings on the oil cooler tube were leaking. Should have cost me only $10 to do the work, but I ended up spending around $350. At least I have a shiny new water pump though.

 

[viper_iii]

I only recently heard about alternators being a bit of a higher issue than normal.
Water Pump is a known as well as a plastic pipe near it, is common to crack -

good to know about the darn oil O rings though... just hitting ~ 105 on our LR4

Alternator issue I'm told is due to its location near the bottom of the motor and can get wet and cause plenty of issues if it doesn't get cleaned out -

here in SoCal don't really get that much water / snow - so only issue is when crossing streams, but since we don't have much water there generally isn't much issue with that either! until it floods!

 

[Surfrider77]

...
Alternator issue I'm told is due to its location near the bottom of the motor and can get wet and cause plenty of issues if it doesn't get cleaned out -
...

I was under the impression the alternator in the LR4 was a sealed unit. Part of the over-engineering that went into these trucks for the off-road / wading capabilities.

http://wardsauto.com/news-analysis/land-rover-lr4-sure-footed-elegant-pricey

the Land Rover V-8 has waterproof belts, alternator, air-conditioning compressor, power steering pump and starter motor, in case a stream needs fording.

 

[jwest]

I was under the impression the alternator in the LR4 was a sealed unit. Part of the over-engineering that went into these trucks for the off-road / wading capabilities.

http://wardsauto.com/news-analysis/land-rover-lr4-sure-footed-elegant-pricey

well we know from many posts by people even lucky8 having trouble off road in mud ponds killing the alternator - so you'd have to see if it got changed on the lr4. Would be nice if a sealed version could be put on the lr3

 

[viper_iii]

I agree... but several I've talked to said it was obvious that the lower placement of the LR4 lead to the alternators demise...

Mine still going good but again haven't been in / near much water... our downpours the past year are what most states / areas would call a sprinkle.
(being in my area our annual total is ~4 inches)

Back to OP...
I'm 1/2 wondering if you got a lemon or drove it like they stole it... which is fun in these - I enjoy the engine in the LR4 very much!
My LR3s that I've had in the past were driven pretty hard... those tended to have more issues...
my LR4 primary highway miles and relatively little hard driving - still - several issues but nothing too major ... YET... but expected...

 

[mbw]

I killed my alternator a little over a year ago. I don't think it was mud or water but its hard to know. My rig has seen some mud, but that part of the motor is sealed up pretty well. Easy to clean off, but its certainly not sealed (the alternator itself).

Wonder if it would be possible to get a water cooled alternator in there. That would be better. Mine seemed like a the electronics on it failed, rather than the mechanical/coil part.

 

[gsxr]

The majority of the time, a "failed alternator" means the voltage regulator died or wore out. The regulator typically has carbon brushes which wear over time/miles. Most of the time, the regulator can be replaced separately, but repair shops like to replace the entire alternator instead. The only other item on the alternator which is likely to fail are the bearings, which are usually also replaceable separately, but with much more effort required than swapping the regulator.

Disclaimer: I have quite a bit of experience with Bosch alternators from the 80's through early 2000's, but have no direct experience with the LR4 alternator. It appears the unit for most V8 LR4's is made by Denso, p/n LR065246 (previously LR023421), photo attached.

Interestingly, it appears the regulator is not available separately for the LR4 V8 alternator, or at least I could not find a part number in Microcat or via Google. Probably have to replace the entire assembly, spendy at the dealer ($901 list, ~$780 from discount dealers) but thankfully the aftermarket Denso is available for under $350:
https://importecautoparts.com/parts/part_number/LR065246